Garden Introduction: Hobbit Life Skills

Last month I mentioned that I intend to throw myself into gardening this year. I want to create a garden worthy of the Shire. It’s no secret I’m a bit of a Hobbit – I delight in good food, good company and a good adventure. And now it is time to acquire that most Hobbity of skills, gardening.

The trouble is my garden, if I can call it that, has slowly been reclaimed by the wilderness over the last decade. Bruce and I are not natural gardeners. In fact, if my track record with houseplants is anything to go by I have rather a black thumb. In the 11 years we have lived here all our spare time has been spent on renovating the house. The garden, I’m ashamed to say, has been rather neglected. I have my work cut out, needing to learn on the job. Coaxing the land into a space that works with nature, but that also works for us as a productive space and place to relax in.

I would like to build on last years modest success in the greenhouse with tomatoes and cucumbers and grow considerably more food. Eventually, I’d love a firepit and somewhere to sit and enjoy the hazy summer evenings. Raised beds to grow food, and even an apple tree. …Eventually!

Firstly, there is landscaping work to be done. Collapsed terraces to repair and a drystone wall to build. There is a seemingly impenetrable thicket of raspberry and brambles that need cutting back. What was once a lawn that needs uncovering. If there was a way to properly fence them in I’d be tempted to get pigs to help clear the land. Alas, due to the awkward terrain and layout it looks like I’ll be doing most of it by hand. I daren’t share photos of the true extent of the mess it is in currently, other than these little glimpses. However, I do hope to post here occasionally on my progress, if only to stay accountable.

6 comments

I will be following your progress! We’ve been here nearly 8 years, the garden wasn’t particularly beautiful but after two years of free ranging chickens it’s pretty much destroyed! Hoping to tackle a few areas this year!

About

Bryony Whistlecraft

Wanderer of wuthering moors and woodlands wild. My home and heart lies in Yorkshire and my work aims to evoke the local folklore, landscape and heritage from which I draw endless inspiration. Mooredge in the Mist is my ode to the stories that this land has to tell. Whispers from old stones, bones, beck and beyond …read more